Fox Reportedly Threatened To Fire Shepard Smith If He Criticizes Tucker Carlson Again

Fox News reportedly “thanked” news anchor Shepard Smith for standing up for the network’s own senior judicial analyst against smears from Tucker Carlson and a pro-Trump guest by threatening to fire Smith if he does it again.

A must-read article by Gabriel Sherman in Vanity Fair describes how the looming impeachment of Donald Trump has reportedly sent Fox News into “management bedlam.” The disarray has been apparent for a while. We have seen Trump-worshipers such as Sean Hannity ignoreFox’sreporting in favor of pro-Trump propaganda. Also, there have been some high-profile departures by those who have blasted the network for its “partisan misinformation” and calling it a “cult of Trump”

Nowhere was that disarray more apparent than in this week’s feud between Smith and Carlson. As I explained in a previous post, Carlson sided with pro-Trump lawyer Joseph diGenova, who has a history of unprofessional behavior, when he called Fox’s own senior judicial analyst “a fool” for opining that Trump had committed a crime in trying to strong arm Ukraine into digging up dirt for his personal political benefit. The next day, after Smith called the smear “repugnant” and went on to cite numerous respected attorneys who agree with Napolitano, Carlson, ofallpeople, accused Smith of being a dishonest opinion host.

Smith's title is “Chief news anchor and managing editor, breaking news division.” But rather than stand up for two people it presumably pays because of their trustworthiness, the network threw them under the pro-Trump propaganda bus.

Seeking to quell the internecine strife before it carried into a third day, Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott and president Jay Wallace communicated to Smith this morning to stop attacking Carlson, a person briefed on the conversation said. “They said if he does it again, he’s off the air,” the source said. (Fox News spokesperson Irena Briganti denied that management had any direct conversation with Smith).

Will Smith and/or Napolitano walk out after this hideous slap in the face? If you ask me, Fox needs Smith’s fig leaf of news legitimacy more than Smith needs Fox. Ditto for Napolitano. That will be even more true if Trump goes down.

The sad reality for Smith is that by choosing to do his work at Fox News, he’s irrevocably damaged his credibility as a journalist. While it’s possible that a much smaller outlet might take him after he’s fired, it’s also possible, that like so many other former Fox News personalities, he’ll struggle to find another gig.

He seems to be a genuinely decent man trying to report the news, but he made a terrible choice about his workplace. And despite his attempts to call out the nonsense, he still chose to keep working there. The tradeoff is that they’ve paid him well. But there is a price.

We’ll see if Fox News wishes to can him – it sounds like they’re going all-in with the full Pence White House support idea. I really don’t know of any legitimate journalist who would choose to work at Fox News at this point, not even for the money they’d offer. Because that price in long-term career and reputation is simply too high for any decent person to want to pay.

Thanks, Daniel. You’ve definitely given us a great deal to consider. In my ignorance, I wondered what a GNOMJUDGE actually was, but after consulting Webster’s and the Shorter Oxford, I find you are describing Mr Napolitano as ‘Generally Not Overly Moronic’. Thanks again!

“……..We have Fox – surprise, surprise, surprise (as Gomer Pyle used to say) – favoring a white nationalist pundit over an actual journalist hosting the sole “fair and balanced” news program on the network……….”

WELLGAAAAAAWWWWWWWLLEEEEE!! SHA – ZAM!!

(another two of Gomer Pyle’s trademark phrases)

In light of the long-awaited impeachment inquiry finally commencing, sooner or later the Murdochs WILL give Shep Smith the HEAVE-HO from FoKKKs Spews — and like John McKee just said, when it does, Shep will get MAJORLEAGUE “KA-CHINGS!” (i.e BIG $$$$) from whatever network hires him, (especially CNN or MSNBC) — I GUARANTEE IT!

Just as Nancy’s long-derided cautiousness on launching an impeachment enquiry has turned into a veritable triumph of timing, Shep’s saintlike patience in the face of a never-ending tsunami of hate will pay off handsomely when he finally makes the move to a legitimate network.